The present invention relates to the art of electric arc welding and more particularly to a package for transporting a coil of electric arc welding wire from the manufacturer to the end user.
In automatic arc welding, it is common practice to provide a large supply of welding wire in a package that is delivered to the welding equipment and connected to the welder. This procedure provides a continuous supply of welding wire. The wire is coiled in the package for transportation and for feeding the welding wire to the welder. During use, the welding wire is uncoiled from the package and is directed through a feeding dome normally referred to as a xe2x80x9chatxe2x80x9d, as shown in Cooper 5,277,314, incorporated by reference herein. Such transporting and feeding package is in the form of a cylindrical fiberboard drum with a center fiberboard core around which the wire is coiled. The wire is pulled from the drum through the hat under the control of a retaining member in the form of a flat ring extending around the core. The retaining member is also referred to as a xe2x80x9cpayout ringxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cbrake ringxe2x80x9d, since it controls the movement of the wire as it is being pulled from the package. This Cooper patent is incorporated by reference as background information as known technology in the electric arc welding art. It shows a package for transporting and feeding electric welding wire. Another package for transporting and feeding coiled welding wire is illustrated in Chung 5,746,380, incorporated by reference herein. As in the Cooper patent, this Chung patent is incorporated by reference as background information showing a transporting and feeding package with an upper feeding hat through which the welding wire is pulled during the welding operation Another welding wire package is shown in Dragoo 5,758,834, incorporated by reference herein. This third patent merely disclose and describe the background information to which the present invention is directed. The invention is used with a package utilizing a pull down bar for biasing the retaining member, so the coiled welding wire can settle during transportation. This known background wire packaging technology is described in Cooper 5,819,934, incorporated by reference herein. By incorporating all of these patents into the application as background information, it is not necessary to explain the known welding wire package technology in the field to which the present invention is directed.
When using a transporting and feeding package for electric arc welding wire, the package usually takes the form of a drum or octagonally shaped box with an open top end closed by a lid during shipment. As shown in Cooper 5,819,934, the fiberboard drum or other package is closed at its top for transportation and the retainer member is biased downwardly against the coiled welding wire. This packaging concept is well known in the trade and is used by many welding wire producers. When the package of welding wire is received by the factory for use in a welding operation, the lid of the package is removed, the pull down bar is withdrawn and a hat is positioned over the top of the package. The hat has a shape matching the outer peripheral shape of the package. Such hats are shown in Cooper 5,277,314, Chung 5,746,380 and Dragoo 5,758,834. The operator must select a hat which will match the open end of the package and thread wire from the coil through the feeding opening on the top of the hat. Then, the hat is moved downwardly and fixed upon the open end of the package. The wire threading operation and the hat mounting procedure is time consuming and requires a certain amount of skill. Since various manufacturers have different size drums and the packages vary between a round package and an octagonally shaped package, a special hat must be assigned to each of the packages and probably to each of the manufacturers of the welding wire. This requires a matching of the feeding hat with the transporting and the feeding package. Since the welding process is in a factory environment, the hat awaiting use on the package can become distorted or otherwise damaged. This requires further man power to straighten the hat and assemble the hat after the wire has been threaded through the feeding opening. This is the procedure now being used and it has the discussed disadvantages which are overcome by the present invention.
The present invention involves a package for transporting and feeding a coil of welding wire used for automatic welding in welding equipment, such as robotic welders. This new package overcomes the disadvantages of the use of a separate hat that must be installed by the end user. In accordance with the invention, a wire package includes a feeding hat that has a flat top and is the lid for the wire container. The hat has a downwardly extending skirt with a shape matching the outer shape of the wire container with elements on the skirt and on the outside wall of the container allowing the hat to be held in the downward position during transportation. At the welding equipment, it is merely necessary to disengage the elements holding the lid or the container on the container. The hat is then raised and locked into an upper position. At this time, the previously threaded wire is disengaged from the lid and directed to the welding equipment. By using the lid of the container as a feeding hat, the hat is shipped with the container and it is not necessary to locate, assemble and mount a hat at the welding equipment.
In accordance with the invention, there is provided a transporting and feeding package for a coil of welding wire. The package comprises a wire receiving container with a vertical wall having a lateral shape and defining an open top of the container. The container can be round, square or have other lateral configurations. The wire feeding hat, with a wire outlet and a downwardly extending skirt having a lower end with an opening can be moved vertically along the vertical wall of the container between a lower transporting position and a raised feeding position. Thus, the hat forms a lid for the container and the wire is pulled from the coil and fastened on the outside of the lid. An aspect of the invention involves a first engagement element on the hat near the lower end of the skirt and matching a second engagement element on the vertical wall near the open end of the container. These two elements engage each other to lock the hat vertically with respect to the container when the hat is in the raised feeding position. Thus, the elements engage each other when the hat is in the raised feeding position and are disengaged from each other when the hat is in the lower transporting position. In this lower position, hold down elements, such as pieces of tape, are secured between the skirt and vertical wall of the container to hold the hat in the lowered position. Thus, the hat forms a transporting lid for the package.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the first and second elements include a recess in the container and protrusions on the skirt of the hat. As another equivalent arrangement, the element that protrudes is at the top of the container wall and the recessed element or engagement element to capture the protruding element is on the lower end of the skirt. All of these arrangements are directed to the concept of a mechanism allowing the hat to slide up the container and then snap into the raised position where it is held during the subsequent feeding operation. There is no need, nor requirement, to thread wire through the hat, since the hat is integrally formed with the container to constitute the total package. The wire is shipped with a leading portion extending through the feeding opening of the hat in the preferred embodiment of the invention. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, the container is a drum with a central cylindrical core around which the wire is coiled. A freely movable payout ring or retainer ring extends around the core and exerts pressure on the coiled wire, which pressure is biased during transporting and is merely held by gravity during feeding. The ring forms a payout ring or braking ring for the wire during the feeding operation. During shipment, in accordance with an aspect of the invention, the package has a biased hold down bar extending across the payout ring and through vertical slots in the center core and out a single slot in the container whereby the payout ring is biased downwardly during transportation. The hold down bar is withdrawn from the container after the hat is moved into the upper feeding position at the welding equipment. This releases the hold down of the retainer ring allowing the ring to form a braking operation.
The primary object of the present invention is the provision of a package for transporting and shipped coiled welding wire, which package has a lid that is also a feeding hat.
Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a package, as defined above, which package allows shipment of the wire in a standard biased hold down condition with the welding wire extending through the feeding opening of the hat to facilitate positioning of the hat, removing of the hold down bar and connecting the wire to the welding equipment by rapidly performed, simple manual procedures.
Another object of the present invention is the provision of a package, as defined above, which package includes elements between a lower skirt of the hat and the outer wall of the container forming the package whereby the hat is snapped and/or locked in the upper raised position.
Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a package, as defined above, which package, with its integral hat, can be returned to the manufacturer for reuse.
Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a package, as defined above, which package can be used with round containers or drums, polyagonally shaped containers, containers with center cores, containers without center cores and a variety of other package configurations and designs.